Potato-digger.



TEFO.

POTATO BIGGER.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 6,1910.

. 9'89,442 Patented Apr.11, 1911.

q/VH wwoeo 6607296 %M 9% M 5m YHF NOREIS PETERS Co, WASHINGTON. n. c.

GEORGE TEFO, 0F VULCAN, MICHIGAN.

POTATO-BIGGER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed July 6, 1910.

Patented Apr. 11, 1911. Serial No. 570,584.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE 'lnro, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, residing at Vulcan, in the county of Dickinson and State ofMichigan, have invented new and useful Improvements in Potato-Diggers,of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to potato diggers, and it has for its object toproduce a simple and inexpensive machine, readily operable by hand powerby means of which potatoes may be conveniently and thoroughly dug fromthe ground, separated from the dirt and deposited in piles to enablethem to be conveniently gathered.

With these and other ends in View which will readily appear as thenature of the in-- vention is better understood, the same consists inthe improved construction and novel arrangement and combination of partswhich will be hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed outin the claims.

In the accompanying drawing has been illustrated a simple and preferredform of the invention, it being, however, understood that no limitationis necessarily made to the precise structural details therein exhibited,but that changes, alterations and modifications within the scope of theclaims may be resorted to when desired.

In the drawing,-Figure 1 is a side elevation of a potato diggerconstructed in accordance with the invention, showing the digging orexcavating member in its initial position ready for digging and withdotted lines indicating the digging member partway advanced to the nextor carrying position. Fig. 2 is a top plan view. Fig. 3 is a sideelevation of a portion of the machine showing the digging member in thecarrying position. Fig. 4 is a side elevation of a portion of themachine, showing the digging member in discharging position.

Corresponding parts in the several figures are denoted by likecharacters of reference.

The frame of the machine includes side members 1, 1 connected with andsupported by an axle 2 having ground wheels 3, 3. The side members areprovided adjacent to their front ends with supporting members or legs 4,and they are connected together by a cross bar 5. The side members maybe extended, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, to form handles whichmay be grasped by the operator for convenience in moving the machinefrom place to place. The side members 1 are provided with dependingbrackets 6 affording bearings for the digging member A which may bedescribed as consisting of a shaft or body portion 7 terminally extendedto form pivot members which are supported for rotation in the bearings,as indicated at 7. The shaft or body portion is provided with radiallyextending curved or arcuate teeth or tines 8. The terminal ends orpivots of the shaft or body 7 are equipped with curved or arcuate cranks9 extending in the opposite direction to the tines 8.

Standards 10 rising from the side members 1 afiord bearings for a rockshaft 11 carrying a lever 12, the rear end of which carries a cross bar13 the ends of which are connected with the cranks 9 by means of links1 1. The forward end of the lever 12 moves in a guide member 15 which ismounted upon a cross bar 16 connecting the side members of the frame,said guide member being provided with a detachable stop member, such asa pin or plug 17, lying in the path of the lever 12 to limit the strokeor movement of the latter, said plug or stop member being arranged at asuitable distance from the upper extremity of the guide. The latter isprovided at its upper extremity with an adjustable stop member, such asa set screw 18 which serves to limit the upward movement of the leverwhen the plug 17 is removed from the aperture 19 provided for itsreception, as will be seen in Fig. 4-.

The normal or initial position of the parts of the machine is indicatedin full lines in Fig. 1, from which it will appear that the forward endof the lever 12 rests against the underside of the stop member 17, theteeth or tines of the digging member being pointed downwardly andrearwardly. The machine in operation, straddles the row of potatoes thatis to be operated upon, and it is obvious that when the legs stand inthe furrows adjacent to the ridge, the digging member will enter intothe furrow to the requisite depth. The parts are not only proportionedto obtain this result, but the supporting legs may, if desired, bedepressed into the loose soil to the requisite depth. By depressing theforward end of the lever to the position indicated in Fig. 1 in dottedlines and again restof ing it to its initial position in the manner of apump handle, the digging member will be swung past the positionindicated in dotted lines in Fig. 1, and

to the position indicated in full lines in Fig. 3, thus causing thetines to dig into the soil and to gather the potatoes from the hilladjacent to which the digger has been positioned, the potatoes and someloose dirt being gathered in the basket-like receptacle formed by thetines. To assist in performing this operation, the links 14 arepreferably curved, as shown, so that an excess of weight will be locatedat one side of the pivotal members which connect said links respectivelywith the cross bar 13 of the lever 12 and with the cranks 9 to assist inovercoming the dead center when the lever is manipulated to actuate thedigger against the resistance of the earth. If necessary, separation maybe efi'ected by a few short downward strokes of the forward end of thelever, causing the dirt to be sifted between the tines. While in'thisposition, the ma chine may be moved forward adjacent to the next hill.The stop member 17 is now removed, and the forward end or handle of thelever is thrown upward, as indicated in Fig. 4:, thus throwing thedigging member in an upward and forward direction to the dischargingposition indicated in Fig. a. By restoring the lever arm or handle toits initial position, the rotation of the digging member will becompleted, and the initial position indicated in Fig. 1 will be resumed,the apparatus being now ready for repetiton of the digging operation. Itis obvious that when the potatoes are planted in drills, the moving ofthe apparatus from place to place will be gaged accordingly.

By means of this machine or apparatus,

the construction and operation of which is extremely simple, potatoesmay be efliciently dug, separated from the adhering dirt and depositedin piles from which they may be conveniently gathered.

Sun oorted for rotation and havin a crank an operating lever, and a linkconnecting the lever with the crank. V

4. In a potato digger, a digging member supported for rotation, meansfor rotating the digging member by successive movements, and means forsupporting the digging member at the end of each movement.

5. In a potato digger, a frame having supporting wheels, a diggingmember supported for rotation and having cranks, a hand lever, a crossbar carried by the lever, links connecting the cross bar with thecranks, a guide for the lever, and stop means movably connected with theguide and lying in the path of the lever, said lever being adapted bysuccessive manipulations to effeet a complete rotation of the diggingmember, said stop means being adapted to support the lever and thedigging member in adjusted position at the end of each manipulation. V

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.V

GEORGE TEFO.-

Witnesses: 4

ANTON BUrrLER,

CLINTON IV. TURNER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G.

